Another summer has come and gone – but before diving back into yet another hectic school – we slipped away for a last-minute getaway! Colorado and the Rockies – not simply a leisurely break, rather, in Ajey’s words – a hiking boot camp! Not that we were going to completely rough it – if there’s one thing I draw the line at, it is camping outside. Hiking all day – bring it on – as long as I have a comfortable bed to sleep in, and clean toilets in the morning!

Flight to Denver was from Chicago – we didn’t have a really great start, actually! Just as we were leaving, my hiking shoes literally fell apart – not just a rip or a tear, the entire sole actually crumbled and disintegrated. I had passed on buying new shoes with Ajey and Manasi, relying instead on what I thought were still-in-good-shape shoes from France – now it was back to my Asics for me!! And then, as always, construction, an accident and a lengthy detour brought us to a now-familiar nail-biting race to the airport – only to find that the flight is delayed! Sigh!! Three hours later we were on our way, and made it into Denver well past midnight.

Late night notwithstanding, next morning, we set off to our first hike – Mount Falcon, about an hour’s drive from Denver. A quick stop at a grocery store to stock up on drinks and snacks, sandwiches from Jimmy John’s for lunch. This was to be an easy warm-up hike – and it turned out to be anything but!! The sun was shining brightly, too bright almost, and the total absence of foliage, made this a hard walk up Mount Falcon. We took the Castle Rock trail all the way up to the ‘castle’ – the Walker house, once a luxurious dwelling, now in ruins after being struck by lightning. The shelter at the top was the perfect place to have lunch – very rewarding! The way down was the Turkey Trot trail, with gorgeous views of the Red Rock. From 1650m to 2150m and back, a total of about 5 hours hike. Of course, the only thing that kept me on my feet for the last hour or so was the promise of Advil and a hot bath at the end of the day!!

Boulder and the Rocky National Park was the next on the list. We were getting into the heart of the Rockies now – with the beautiful little town of Estes Park as the gateway to the Rockies. What a picturesque location – nestled in the mountains, the air clean and crisp – heavenly!! Driving through the park, an endless vista of mountains rolled before us with lofty snow-capped peaks rising into the sky on the horizon. The starting point for today’s hike was the Bear Lake Trailhead at an altitude of 2600m – we were to begin considerably higher than the day before. Bear Lake is a popular destination – not just for serious hikers, but also for picnickers and tourists. The easiest is a circuit around Bear Lake – the ‘trail’ is a well-beaten track, good enough for strollers, and the views are incredible!

From Bear Lake, about a mile away is Nymph Lake – and then the trail climbed steadily to get to Dream Lake. What beautiful names!! This was a bit more difficult climb – with the trail hugging the edge of a cliff a few times – but plenty of shady spots to stop and catch your breath.  And if the walk itself is breathtaking (!) – with dense forests and babbling brooks – the beauty of Dream Lake is simply transcendental. I could use all the adjectives in my thesaurus, and I would still come up short to describe Dream Lake – this was easily the best moment of the entire trip!!

All the way back to Bear Lake, and then we headed up the Glacier Gorge Trail to Mills Lake. Not so many people on this trail, and as we crossed above the tree line, the sun got hotter and hotter, and the steady uphill walk was harder and harder. Alberta Falls is a good place to stop on the way – there’s something about the sound of the water tumbling off the rocks, crystal drops glittering in the sun that is so incredibly soothing. I was tempted to stay here and let Ajey and Manasi complete the hike – seriously, it was doubtful that anything else was going to top the divine Dream Lake. But I did want to see the ‘Keyboard of the Winds’ – the wind carved ridge of the Gorge – so onwards to Mills Lake!!

We walked more than 10 miles that day – up and down between 2600m and 2850m – and when we stopped for dinner in Boulder at a very nice Nepalese restaurant, I could not feel my legs. 2 days down – 2 more to go!! Next up, Colorado Springs and Pikes Peak!!